Construction workers are often exposed to dangerous conditions that can result in serious injury or even death. In addition to working with heavy machinery and powerful equipment, workers may be required to position themselves at significant heights above the ground, which can pose a risk of falling. Because there are often openings in floors and walls of buildings that are under construction or in repair, it is critical to the safety of the workers to install fall protection systems. Temporary guardrails and other type of guarding systems are often installed to prevent the occurrence of falls.
However, in the event that a worker does fall, back-up fall arrest systems are often used. For example, safety nets may be placed below fall hazard areas to stop a person's fall with relatively little injury. Another type of fall protection is a personal fall arrest system or lifeline system. The lifeline system (e.g., a horizontal lifeline system) usually contains a cable securely fastened to the building or other secure structure in a fall hazard environment. Also, a lifeline or lanyard is attached from the cable to a harness that is worn by a person operating in the fall hazard location. If a worker were to fall over an edge or through a hole while attached to the lifeline system, the worker would only fall a distance equal to about the length of the lifeline. Therefore, the effectiveness of these and other fall protection systems can have a large impact on the lives of people working in such fall hazard environments.